Tarrano the Conqueror
History Tarrano the Conqueror, Warlord of the Planets, was once just an obscure under-secretary in the capitol of the Venus Central State. He grew up as Taro in the "Cold Country" of Venus, along with a girl who loved him for the man he was and eventually took the name Tara as a promise to be his mate. However, young Taro wanted much more...he was hungry for recognition. Using a combination of charm and tactical cunning, he raised an army and on May 12, 2430, his plot to assassinate all the major leaders of Earth and Venus was a success. After essentially conquering those planets, he led his forces in an invasion of Mars. He likely would have conquered the entire Solar System, but he was obsessed with a woman named named Elza Brende. Tarrano abducted her, her twin brother Georg and her friend Jac Hallen. Tara attempted to kill her rival, Elza, using remote controlled flying blade discs, but Georg and Jac stopped her. Elza and her friends, along with Wolfgar, a spy working for Princess Maida of the Venus Central State, managed to fight Tarrano directly. When it was clear that he could not conquer Elza, Tarrano crashed his own ship. After awakening from a coma, Tarrano was stranded on an asteroid between Mars and Earth, with Tara and a race of insect-men. Tarrano was described as: "A small, slight figure of a man, no more than thirty-five. Simply dressed; white trousers of the tropics, with a strip of narrow black down the leg-fronts; a girdle of gold; ruffled white shirt, with sleeves that flared a trifle, and a neck-piece of black. From his belt dangled a few instruments and several personal weapons—beautifully wrought, small—almost miniatures—yet deadly-looking for all that. He was bareheaded; black hair closely clipped. A face smooth-shaven. Thin, with a nose hawk-like, and black eyes and heavy brows. His mouth was thin-lipped, though smiling now, disclosing even, white teeth. Yet a cruel mouth, with the firm jaw of determination and power under it. The familiar gray Venus skin, but with that bronze cast of the people of the Central State. At first glance, not an unusual or particularly commanding figure. Yet the man's power of personality, the sheer dominant force of him, radiated like a tower code-beam. No one could be in his presence an instant without feeling it. A power that enwrapped you; made you feel like a child. Helpless. Anxious to placate a possible wrath that would be devastating; anxious—absurdly—for a smile. It was a radiation of genius, humbling every mediocre mortal it touched." Although not a large man, Tarrano was described as having extraordinary strength and fought with deliberate technique, suggesting he may have had some martial arts training. Tarrano's weapons included a painful electrified whip, a muscle paralyzing ray, and knockout gas. While he was smart and cunning, he also knew how to manipulate people through fear. He was absolutely merciless. He was aided by a Venusian soldier named Argo, and had command over assassins, an army of soldiers and an entire armada of war ships. Golden Age Appearances *Attack on Planet Mars #1 (Avon Comics) See Also *Project Gutenberg Category:Villains Category:1930 Debuts Category:Literary Characters Category:Comic Book Characters Category:Avon Characters Category:Science Fiction Characters Category:Venusian Characters Category:Ray Cummings - Creator Category:Male Characters Category:Altus Press Character